Kaijinkotsu no Naruto
by Obsidian Fireheart
Summary: Among the warring clans, a great bloodline existed. Eventually, the clan bearing it went extinct, but the genes that coded for it lived on. Generations later, few exist that bear the white curse, the Shikotsumyaku, but Uzumaki Naruto will perfect it in order to protect his loved ones and become the Hokage!
1. Dead Bones

**Kaijinkotsu no Naruto (Naruto of the Ash Bone)  
灰燼骨のナルト**

**_Chapter 1: Dead Bones_**

* * *

Amongst the warring clans, almost a century ago, a great terror roamed the wetlands. Tales spoke of white monsters, bleeding of bone, which destroyed their enemies without hesitation. They were no longer men, tales told. Once the Dead Bone Pulse got to them, they were reduced to monsters.

So the Kaguya locked them up. It was their curse to bear; the gods frowned upon them for their warlike ways, so they blighted them with the Shikotsumyaku. But the Kaguya, they feared the monsters as much as the outsiders did. If one day the monsters escaped… well, that would spell ruin for the entire clan. But behind those bars, where the beholders would watch them starve to death, rattling the chains that bound them like madmen, they were safe.

So the extinction of the Kaguya was not due to these monsters, but rather their arrogance. With the monsters locked up, the clan was free to continue their devastating ways. Then, as the time of nomadic clans passed and nations of warriors rose, the Kaguya were among the first to fall. The nation of Kiri swiftly put an end to the clan after casualties piled up. There would be no more barbarianism, the new Mizukage had said. With a swift chop of the blade, the head rolled, and the Kaguya clan was no more.

But the curse persisted, carrying on through the blood of many who had mingled with the forsaken clan in the past. And the curse recessed, hiding in the genes of so few, who statistically would be unlikely to bear children together, but in reality, it would happen.

Uzumaki Kushina of Uzushio descended from the couple Uzumaki Tokato and Kaguya Miko five generations prior. Somehow, the gene lived on, and imparted itself into the woman, lying dormant.

Namikaze Minato, carrying the blood of waves and winds, descended from the noble house of Katora from times long since passed. The Daimyo of that house raped one Kaguya Seika, and the entire property was burned down in retribution by her clan. The child that resulted from that hideous pairing was lost and presumed dead in the fire.

But as fate would have it, for the select few in the current age, the curse survived, and for some, would be a blessing, and others, a burden. Right here and now, on a dark night after Konoha's newest batch of Academy Graduates were chosen, the curse saved Uzumaki Naruto's life.

* * *

The gargantuan shuriken was deflected with ease after he felt a shredding pain erupt from his shoulder. The white-haired boy winced, and felt the location on his body that he swore just split in half. Glancing at the site of his pain, he recoiled at the sight of his shoulder blade exposed, forming a great shield. It wasn't even dented by the shuriken, big as it was.

"My… my shoulder!" He gasped, feeling the bloody bone slowly slide back into its proper location. The pain was immense, but Naruto had felt worse. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"You truly are a demon!" His opponent cried. Naruto took a moment to return his mind to the battlefield, turning his attention to the man standing in the tree. His Academy teacher, after six odd years of teaching him, betrayed him. It grated on Naruto's nerves to know that the man faked kindness in preparation for this night. If Naruto was a little less lucky… well, he probably would be in two pieces at this point. He glanced at his teacher, Iruka, who was still a little shaken up since the bastard had informed Naruto of his burden. The Nine-Tailed Fox, a beast of unfathomable power, rested in his stomach. Was that the reason for his bony projection? Maybe, maybe not. What he did know was that he was going to practice a bit more with this bone thingy. Once he taught Mizuki a lesson of course.

"Teme…" Naruto hissed. "You just made enemies with the wrong guy!" He rushed forward, jumping. He felt it, the bones calling to him. They urged to be released. Now that he unlocked it, it was so easy! Osseous tissue emerged from his forearm in a bloody mess, the radial bone deforming as it emerged straight from his arm and extended past the limit of Naruto's punch straight into his adversary's heart. The bones of Mizuki's ribs stood no chance next to the extreme solidity of his own bones and shattered on impact.

Naruto felt the blood of his former teacher's punctured lung spill onto him as the man coughed out his final breath, and his awareness returned once more. His forearm bone retracted almost fearfully as Naruto looked at what he had accomplished. Iruka, too, was equally silenced.

The young man looked at his arm fearfully; a bloody hole was torn in the fabric of his jacket where the bone emerged. He willed it once more and winced as the bone emerged again, carrying with it the gore of the boy's inner arm.

"Naruto… you…" Iruka broached. He shook his head. He was going about this wrong. "Congratulations Naruto."

The young man looked at his teacher. "For what…?" He glanced at Mizuki's bleeding corpse before looking back at his sensei. "I just brutally murdered one of my teachers."

Iruka sighed, knowing that this would come. It happened to all who made their first kill. This one, however, was personal. Naruto trusted the man as much as any student would ordinarily trust his teacher, and that trust was just betrayed. He would have to approach this carefully. "Naruto, look at me. You did not kill one of your teachers. You merely disposed of a traitor to Konoha, very efficiently might I add. You deserve commendations for that." He thought for a moment. "You know what, Naruto? Close your eyes."

The white-haired boy felt something wrapping around his head, and he opened his eyes excitedly as he felt Iruka's headband wrapped around his head. "Congratulations on your promotion, Genin Uzumaki. You will make Konoha proud."

Despite the mangled body beside him, Naruto could have sworn he had never been so happy in his life.

* * *

"This is an interesting development indeed." The old Hokage mused, taking a drag from his pipe as he observed Naruto's new abilities. This explained why the boy's hair was white at least. To think that he had latent Kaguya blood in him. Hiruzen knew that both of his parents had blood from around Kiri, although his father's line had been a little less certain, this event just confirmed it.

"What is it, Jiji?" Naruto asked. The old man could tell that he was somewhat fearful of his ability. He was proud however, that he could manage pulling his bones out through his skin with barely a wince.

The Hokage puffed some tobacco. "What you currently possess is a bloodline from Kirigakure called the Shikotsumyaku." He clarified. "It was known as the curse of the Kaguya clan, who feared its power and had those who possessed it locked up for the whole of their lives." The old man spoke again after seeing his young charge's eyes go wide. "We will not do that to you of course. As it is a bloodline ability, it is in your best interest to foster its use and become proficient with it."

Naruto nodded, taking in the information the old man was giving out with gusto. He played around with his radius a little more, feeling less and less pain as it moved his skin. "So, old man. What about the Kyuubi?"

Hiruzen nodded, fearing this topic. "First, Naruto let me emphasize that despite what Mizuki may have told you, you are not the Kyuubi." He paused, letting the words sink in. "You are as much the Kyuubi as a scroll is the kunai that is stored in it."

The white-haired boy nodded.

"Second, let me make you aware of the duty of a Jinchuuriki. The Yondaime Hokage did not mean to make a Jinchuuriki, but uncontrollable events had the Fox attack the village twelve years ago so naturally, you followed suit. However, since you are a Jinchuuriki, it is advisable that you learn how to use its power."

Naruto nodded, swallowing any protest he had when he noticed the old man's serious expression. He knew that Konoha needed a powerful ninja. Or at least, it could use another one, he wasn't sure. But he was certain that it was the former.

"Jiji, I'm ready." He said. Iruka, who was sitting silently observing, spoke up.

"Naruto's going to be doing some training then?" The teacher concluded. Hiruzen nodded. He retrieved a scroll and began writing, voicing his thoughts on the parchment as his pen glided over its surface.

"He will have two tasks. Training with the Kyuubi's powers, and honing his use of the Shikotsumyaku." The Hokage continued writing. It was apparent that he was writing down an order. "I planned on having you trained with your Jinchuuriki powers later, preferably when you were a chuunin, but tonight's events have made me reconsider. With the power of the Jinchuuriki and the Shikotsumyaku by your side, you can become a ninja like none other." And that was without any of his parents skills, Hiruzen realized. He finished penning his paper. "As such, I am ordering Jiraiya of the Sannin back to Konoha in order to begin your training."

"Jiraiya-sama!" Iruka gasped. "Incredible!"

"Who's Jiraiya?" Naruto asked, scratching his head. Iruka face-palmed, but the Hokage merely chuckled.

"Jiraiya is my student. One of the legendary Sannin." Hiruzen wondered if he should drop the bombshell, but figured he would save the tidbit about him being his godfather for later.

"Your student? He must be really strong then." Naruto grinned. "He's got to be strong! And he's training me!"

The Hokage nodded, pleased with Naruto's enthusiasm. He briefly summoned a small monkey before ordering it to take the note to Jiraiya, and spoke again. "Jiraiya will likely be in town in three days or so. For now, train further in your Shikotsumyaku. I will see if I can't procure any documents about it."

Iruka looked at Naruto. "You're a genin now. Don't forget, you have to meet at the Academy in three weeks' time to be placed on a team. Don't be late."

The Hokage nodded. "You two are dismissed. Naruto, you will know when Jiraiya wants to meet with you."

The ashen-haired boy nodded, taking his leave after bidding the Hokage and Iruka good night. As his footsteps cleared earshot the Hokage spoke again. "His parents would be proud."

"He's going to grow up and be something special." Iruka agreed. The two men bid good night to each other, silently, and parted ways.

* * *

Following three days, Naruto dressed himself as he woke up. He had been admitted to the hospital on the Hokage's recommendation yesterday and the findings had been startling. Although he didn't feel it, he weighed more than twice as much as he did before at just less than two hundred pounds; and it was all in his bones. His chakra structure had changed radically as well. He didn't understand what tenketsu were, but he knew that they had a bit of a pattern. It had taken a while for the medical staff to discover that his bones functioned as a supplementary chakra system, and each acted as an additional chakra point. He was told that this would be incredibly helpful if he were faced against a Hyuuga.

He looked at himself in the mirror. He looked no different outwardly. He was just as skinny as usual, and other than his ability to expose his bones he was just another normal boy. His ribs bulged outward and formed an exoskeleton, before slowly receding back into his body. He was still different.

He sighed, and brushed his ashen hair once more before replacing the brush. Because of his bone techniques, he destroyed his favorite jacket, resulting in him investing in something a bit more resilient to his abilities, simply because of its shape. He finished donning a black tank top and smirked. He was ready for his day.

The door opened. Immediately, he was on guard, slinking to the wall. His door had been locked. Whoever entered was serious. He ejected a bone from his hand, the osseous tissue immediately sharpening to gain an edge sharper than any kunai.

He stepped silently through his apartment, hearing the intruder in his kitchen. If anything about Naruto was exemplary, it was his stealth. He was stealthy enough that ANBU would have trouble finding him, this joker would never notice him…

"Hey Naruto, what's up?" The intruder spoke. Naruto froze, before dropping any attempt at stealth, although he did not discard his weapon.

"Who are you?" Naruto said as he walked into the kitchen. The man was tall, his height accentuated even more by his geta. His most apparent feature was his mane of long white hair, like snow as opposed to Naruto's faintly gray ash-colored hair. The man looked at him.

The man was about to speak, but then looked to his sides, scanning the room. He cursed. "Damn it, there's not enough room."

Naruto raised his eyebrow quizzically. "Huh?"

"Jiraiya, by the way." The man offered his hand. "Jiraiya of the Sannin."

The boy's eyes widened in recognition, associating Jiraiya's large form with his name immediately. "Yeah I knew you were coming." He looked at the door. It was closed and locked, as if the Sannin had never entered. "I'm not going to ask how you got in here."

"That would be for the best." Jiraiya agreed. He sat down at the table, gesturing for Naruto to do the same. "So, from the old man I heard that you've got the Shikotsumyaku. What're you going to do with it?"

Naruto tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

"What are your plans for that? How are you going to use it effectively?"

Naruto frowned, putting his hand on his chin as he thought. "Well… I don't know everything about it yet… I still need to figure out exactly what I can do with it before I can answer that."

"Good answer!" Jiraiya remarked. "And that's what we're going to do for the next three weeks."

"No Jinchuuriki training?" Naruto wondered.

"Nope. That'll take too long for our time frame. Maybe after, depending on your sensei. But that's beside the point. What we need to do is figure out the extent of your abilities." Jiraiya frowned. "I'll warn you; this training will hurt like a bitch."

"I can handle it. I'm pretty tough." Naruto said confidently.

"No doubt." Jiraiya mused. From what the Hokage told him, the hospital suspected the Nine-Tailed Fox healed Naruto of his injuries extremely quickly. Alongside his naturally enhanced healing factor due to his Uzumaki heritage, he was nearly invincible with the Kyuubi's assistance. It was likely that Naruto had a massive pain tolerance simply because of his healing factor.

"Okay, let's get started then. Meet up at training ground 16 and we'll have a look at your abilities."

Naruto clapped his fists. "Osu!"

* * *

The training ground was open, and no one was in sight. The wind blew gently on Naruto's shoulders, giving a pleasant cool feeling on his back. He stood across from his teacher.

Jiraiya looked at him. The boy had shed his shirt for obvious reasons, as he would demonstrate his bone-wielding prowess so that the Sannin could study it.

"Alright, show me what you think is your most impressive bone manipulation." Jiraiya prompted. Naruto nodded, and he felt his ribcage slowly expand and emerge from his skin. The Sannin winced at the apparent pain, but Naruto gave no indication that he even felt it.

"Did you just take your ribs out?" Jiraiya asked, somewhat incredulous. Naruto shook his head.

"No, I made another set. I can't take my ribcage out without causing problems." The boy said. The Sannin nodded. That much was apparent. However, duplicating the ribs was still an amazing feat, and had very real defensive applications. The ribs slid back into the boy's skin with a sickening slurp.

"Show me some offensive techniques." He ordered, and Naruto complied, producing bladed bones from his forearms. He then cut the air around him in a dance, feigning enemies. Jiraiya watched attentively.

Naruto finished, and looked at his teacher. "How was that?"

The man dismissed him. "Your form is sloppy. You need to brush up on your taijutsu skills big time. However, the taijutsu applications of your bloodline definitely have potential." He stood up. "That's what we're going to do: solidify your taijutsu. You'll become a force to be reckoned with because of those bones."

Naruto nodded excitedly, hyped up at the prospect of training. "So, what are we going to do then?"

"For now, physical exercise will be necessary in order to allow for some rock solid stances. The Shikotsumyaku is definitely supposed to have either graceful moves or sturdy ones, and I think you're more built for the latter. Say, how much do you weigh?"

Naruto frowned. "One-hundred eighty three pounds."

Jiraiya was shocked. "Say what? One hundred eighty… right, super dense bones I guess. That might have some influence."

Naruto nodded.

"Well," he moved toward Naruto, inspecting him. Truthfully, Naruto felt a little uncomfortable at the man's scrutiny. "I'll add a gravity seal to you in order to give you some weight training. It'll be set to add ten percent to your weight right now, but you can increase and decrease it as you go." He summoned a inkpot and brush and painted on Naruto's back very quickly before the seal was set. Jiraiya channeled some chakra into it and suddenly the white-haired boy felt much heavier.

"Okay," Jiraiya said. "Now we're going to start with some exercises. Hopefully we can have you up to fifty percent on the seal by the time the three weeks are up. But for now, let's teach you a solid Taijutsu style and see if we can't incorporate those bones. Yeah, I think we're gonna do that for the three weeks we have, but obviously we're going to see how many wacky things you can do with your bones as well. Prepare for some long hard weeks." He surmised. "Now, drop and give me two hundred."

Naruto immediately did so, and fell to the ground before pushing back up. That seal made it so much worse. He was so going to want the Sannin dead after this, he knew it.

* * *

Three weeks had passed by quickly, and soon Naruto found himself free of Jiraiya's hellish training once more. He shook his head. He didn't know that anything could be as grueling as what the Sannin put him through, and if there was anything more so, he never wanted to deal with it. Ever.

So he entered his old Academy classroom with Iruka's headband tied tightly around his head. No one noticed as he entered, but some were giving him strange looks.

"Where'd the baka get a headband from?" He noticed a student, Haruno Sakura, ponder. "Didn't he fail the graduation exam?"

"At least his fashion sense isn't horrendous anymore." Yamanaka Ino commented, flipping her hair. "Actually, he is a bit of a looker under that awful jumpsuit. Look at those arms…"

Sasuke merely stared as Naruto took a seat next to Shikamaru. Obviously there was something different about the dobe.

Naruto looked behind him. "'Sup, Teme?" Sasuke grunted then turned to face the window, as usual. "Talkative as ever."

"Why are you here, Naruto? Did you take some sort of alternate exam?" Shikamaru suddenly asked. Naruto felt strangely intruded upon by his question, and was reserved about his answer.

"You could say so." He hoped that it was clear to Shikamaru that the topic was not open for discussion. The pineapple-haired boy got the hint and stopped talking about it.

"So what did you do over these three weeks then? None of us have seen you anywhere."

Naruto shrugged. "I trained. Trained like hell actually." He chuckled remembering the pain that Jiraiya put him through.

"Looks like it." The boy muttered. "You did more than I ever did."

Naruto grinned. "Doesn't everybody?"

"Troublesome…"

The door opened and Iruka entered, signifying the start of the class. The class hushed and prepared to listen to what he would say.

"Class…" The man began. "It's been a long time teaching you, but honestly, it's flown by." He looked over the classroom. "I'm proud of each and every one of you, and it was a blast teaching you. I wish you all good luck for the future, and hope each one of you achieves your dreams…" He trailed off. "Alright, the part you were all waiting for: team assignments. Each of you will be placed into a team of three, and be supervised and taught by a jonin sensei. Now, you will form an intimate bond with your team, and most likely you will all become best friends. You will fight and risk your lives together, so I'll tell you now that teamwork is essential to forming a cohesive unit." He paused. "Alright, let's begin."

Naruto blinked, staring at Iruka as the man droned off team pairings. His attention refocused some time later.

"Team 7: Akimichi Choji, Haruno Sakura, and Uchiha Sasuke." Iruka said, then covered his ears at Sakura's squeal of joy. Naruto himself flinched, and shot Sakura a dirtier look than the one Ino was sending her currently.

"Team 8," Iruka continued after a pause. "Inuzuka Kiba, Aburame Shino, and Hyuuga Hinata." There was nothing to be said about that team, other than Kiba muttering to his dog that he hoped his sensei was hot. Akamaru barked in agreement.

Iruka resumed. "Team 10: Uzumaki Naruto, Nara Shikamaru, and Yamanaka Ino." Sakura shot her a triumphant look

"Looks like I get Sasuke-kun, Ino-buta!"

Ino was about to retort, but then she looked at Naruto and smirked. "Who knows, I may have found me a gem in the rough yet."

"You mean the dead last?" Sakura blinked. "There's no way he can ever match Sasuke-kun."

"Maybe with a kick in the ass he will." She grinned. "Let's make this a little contest then."

"Deal!" Sakura instantly said, and Ino smiled in response.

"Good."

Iruka crossed his arms. "Are you ladies done?" Without waiting for a reply, he continued. "Alright, so that concludes everything I have to tell you. Please wait here and your sensei will be here to collect you."

Naruto nodded, and sat back, gazing out the window. He looked forward to training with his instructor, and perhaps showcasing some of his skills. He was rather confident with his progress, and it showed not only on his physique, but in his attitude as well. But that wasn't without reason – Naruto's insane healing factor had permitted his muscles to tear and recover at a much faster rate than humanly possible, and he had quickly jumped up the notches on his seal, to the point where his body weighed an extra fifty-five percent wherever he went. He had progressed greatly with his bone techniques as well. He was prepared to show them off whenever he got the chance as a true ninja of the Leaf.

The door opened once more, and Naruto escaped from his thoughts to judge this new arrival. A tall man, Sarutobi Asuma had a bit of scruff unshaven. The young boy could see his hand reaching toward his pocket every now and then, an indication that he was going for something in there. Was it something addictive? Cigarettes maybe? He shook his head. Shikamaru was better at this stuff, there was no sense in him doing it.

"Team 10, follow me." With that, Naruto stood up. So this man was his sensei then…

He was alright with that.

* * *

The man led them to Training Ground 10, where they assumed would be their usual training spot for the coming months. Naruto caught his breath for a moment, his seal still somewhat heavy on his body.

"Right, so, I'm Sarutobi Asuma." He lit a cigarette and placed it into his mouth, taking a drag. "Tell me about yourselves. Let's get to know each other."

Naruto curled his nose at the stench of the smoke, but gave no other signs of his displeasure. "Name's Uzumaki Naruto. I'll be the next Hokage! I like ramen and training. I don't like anyone who discriminates people for something that's not their fault."

Asuma nodded. "That's a start. Alright, who's next?"

Ino shrugged. "I'm Yamanaka Ino. I like botany and practicing my clan's mind techniques. I dislike anyone who gets in the way of love! And this lazy bastard!"

Shikamaru shook his head. "How troublesome. Well, I'm Nara Shikamaru I guess. I like sleeping, and playing shogi, and not training. It's too troublesome to dislike things… well, I don't like it when my mom nags me but…" He trailed off.

Asuma nodded. "Nagging sucks." He sighed. "Alright. I think I know a bit about you all right now. I'll let you know this. We've got a test tomorrow morning."

Ino sighed dramatically. "Another one? We already just passed one. We're genin now, right?"

He hesitated. "Well… no not necessarily. You have to pass this test first. And with a 66 percent failure rate well, you have to be prepared."

"How do we prepare for a test that's tomorrow morning?" Shikamaru asked, annoyed at how troublesome this whole situation was.

"Sleep well, eat right, that stuff." He suggested. "Alright, you all are dismissed." Obviously he didn't want to be here for very long. Naruto frowned. His sensei seemed kind of lazy. At least Ero-Sennin taught him things. Naruto shrugged.

"See you all later." He said, beginning to walk away.

"Oh no you don't!" Ino yanked the collar of his tank top, drawing him in. She grabbed Shikamaru similarly, the boy muttering about how troublesome the whole thing was. "Let's go get some food together. Think of it as team bonding." She suggested.

Naruto pondered this then figured it wouldn't be a problem. "I don't see why not. Let's get some ramen."

"Is ramen all you think about Naruto…? I have a figure to maintain. Let's get something else."

Shikamaru sighed. "Troublesome… how about barbeque?"

Naruto tested the word on his tongue, then figured that there wasn't anything wrong with it. While barbeque wasn't as good as ramen, it was still delicious, and he really didn't have it in a long time. It would be worth having. "Seconded."

Ino sighed. "Barbeque's fine. I just can't eat too much of it." The group began to walk toward one of the barbeque places that was close by.

Naruto looked at her. "You really don't eat a lot, do you?" She was really skinny. He was sure that Iruka mentioned something about it to her.

"I can't let myself go." Ino said. "I have a figure to maintain and people to impress."

"It's not like you'll gain any sort of weight anyway, I mean, you're a ninja. You could probably eat a bit more."

If looks could kill, Ino's glare would have had the white-haired Uzumaki incinerated by now.

"I-I mean…! I think you'll look really nice if you stop this fad diet." He cleared his throat, adopting a serious tone. "Now I don't know about Sasuke, but if your diet hampers your performance as a Kunoichi you're less eligible in my book."

Ino looked scandalized. "How could you…!"

"All I'm saying is that you should be focused on being the best you can be, okay? Don't let simple things get in the way of that." He looked ahead of him, seeing the building that they were looking for. "Alright, I'm starving. I'll go get a table."

Naruto walked into the restaurant, Ino looked at his retreating form. Shikamaru was about to follow him before Ino grabbed his shoulder.

"Is what he said true? Should I change what I eat?" She asked him. Shikamaru quirked an eyebrow.

"Since when did you care what Naruto thought?"

"I…" She stammered, unable to come up with a decent reply. Literally yesterday she had no opinion on Naruto and his thoughts whatsoever.

"Frankly, I agree with him, but that doesn't matter now. It looks like Naruto's got the table. Let's eat." He walked into the restaurant, Ino following behind him.

* * *

Naruto was waiting for them to arrive patiently. Ino looked at him nervously, but there was no indication that he had heard what they were talking about. Or at least, if he had, he was a good actor. She wondered if he really felt that way about her. She knew that her diet wasn't necessarily the best, but it was supposed to earn the attention of Sasuke-kun.

Then she remembered her little competition. She wasn't supposed to be after Sasuke-kun any more. She was supposed to try to earn Naruto's affections. She thought back on what she said to Sakura, merely four hours ago, and realized that she was being shallow.

To earn his love, all for a little spat between two girls. She shook her head. That was pathetic of her to even consider it.

"Ino." She shook herself out of her thoughts, noticing Naruto was speaking to her. "Your turn to order."

She jumped, quickly thinking up something she should have. "Uh… honey barbeque please!" She gave the waiter her best smile. He wrote her order on a notepad then wandered off to complete it.

"You spaced out." Naruto grinned. "Thinking about me?"

"Baka!" She reached across the table and playfully punched him. Despite his changes over the past three weeks, Ino realized he was still the same knucklehead as usual. She felt a blush cross her face when she noticed that he hit the nail on the head.

"Troublesome… You two sound like you're married." Shikamaru shook his head. "And I'm caught in the middle of this." He sighed dramatically.

Their food soon arrived after more talking and Ino noted the intense smell of Naruto's dish.

"I didn't know you liked spicy things." She said, curling her nose in distaste. "Is that jalapeno sauce?"

"Yup!" Naruto said as he dug in. "Didn't really notice it until a while ago, but spicy things are delicious." He ate the barbeque quickly, and Ino was sure that he should have been breathing fire by now. But he wasn't, and she was mildly impressed by his fortitude. Not that she was going to say that out loud of course.

"I'll just stick with my honey barbeque, thanks." She said, taking a bite of her stuff. Shikamaru seemed to notice something strange about her dish, but said nothing. She looked at him, then back at her food, and realized that she had ordered barbeque instead of just a salad like she normally did.

_Naruto's words must have really gotten to me_, she thought.

* * *

When they finished their meal, the each went their separate ways. Naruto grinned as he felt the spicy taste in his mouth, he had to come here more often. Could there be a competitor to the great and holy ramen?

Nah, he decided, it was just the heat of the moment. There could be nothing as amazing as ramen.

With that thought in mind, he headed toward his apartment after giving his goodbyes to his teammates. There was a test tomorrow, and while he wasn't certain that he knew what it was, he knew that it would be helpful to be as prepared as he could be.

He couldn't do anything about that, for now. But he looked at the setting sun and realized that at some point soon, he should head to bed. It was a bit earlier than he was used to, but it was important that he get a good sleep.

"Alright! Tomorrow, I'm taking you by storm, Dattebayo!" He yelled to nobody. Yes, Naruto was feeling good about tomorrow.


	2. A Test of Grit

**_Chapter 2: A Test of Grit_**

* * *

Naruto had arrived at the training ground early, so he began to warm up with some stretches. He had set his seal to forty percent gravity so that he could fight at a higher efficiency, and now was making sure that he could fight effectively at that weight.

Honestly, lowering the seal was something that took getting used to. The moment the weight went down Naruto would feel like he was suddenly floating upward, except he wasn't. It was the strangest feeling in the world, and he had to practice and hone his skills with a lowered weight to make sure he wouldn't overextend his reach due to his new speed. Jiraiya emphasized the importance of training as much without the seal as with it, which was why Naruto wasn't currently carrying twice his body weight right now. It was pointless to be fast if he couldn't control his speed.

"You're here early." He heard from his left. Naruto looked to see Shikamaru entering the clearing, standing as nonchalantly as ever.

"Morning, Shika. I'm surprised you're not sleeping in." The white-haired boy commented.

"I would have, I really would have, but my troublesome mother woke me up and nagged me to get over here." He sighed, sitting down on the grass. He observed Naruto running around the training field. "I'm not surprised you have energy to go around."

"I've always got energy." Naruto said, grinning. "I'm just warming up so I can keep my game going when Asuma-sensei shows up."

The lazy Nara shook his head. "Too much work."

"I had no idea you felt that way." The bone wielder commented sarcastically. He came to a stop, chuckling to himself. "But I'm not gonna boss you around. I have a feeling Ino's gonna do that for us."

"What was that baka!?" They heard from the distance. Shikamaru groaned as Ino approached. "Bossy am I?" She demanded. Naruto paled.

"I said no such thing!" He defended himself futilely. There was no hope. He put his arms over his head to block the incoming fist.

"Ow!" Ino cried as she punched his arm. "That was like punching a brick wall!"

Naruto shrugged. "Was it? Maybe I'm just good like that."

"Maybe you're just that dense, more like." She rebutted.

Naruto pouted, but realized her unknown truth. "Maybe I am."

She raised an eyebrow at his words, but said nothing as they all noticed their sensei approaching. Asuma smiled. "Good job, you all are here. That means we can get started."

He noticed them standing apprehensively. Naruto was already in a defensive stance. Good, they were prepared. This would be a good test. He reached into his pocket and retrieved a zippo lighter, the one he used for his own cigarettes.

"I want you to take this from me. Whoever does manage it passes. Whoever doesn't… well, that's why there's a 66 percent fail rate. Come at me with the intent to kill." Asuma said. He lit a cigarette and took a drag off it. "Ready… go."

Ino and Shikamaru immediately jumped into the surrounding foliage. That was good of them; they were trained well. What he didn't expect was Naruto to suddenly come flying at him with the momentum of a bullet train. Asuma barely dodged to the side as Naruto collided with a tree, sending it tumbling down.

"Geez, you're ready to go, huh?" Asuma said, observing Naruto as he turned around. That punch was massive; if he had been hit by that his ribs would have been destroyed. "You don't even have to use the Shikotsumyaku to send things tumbling to the ground, do you?"

Naruto said nothing, assuming a stance once more. Asuma noted the rigid stance, while it had similarities to the Goken it was leaning much more on the defensive aspect of it. It seemed Jiraiya wanted him to focus on the defensive abilities granted by his bloodline. He took a drag off his cancer stick. Well, might as well test it.

Asuma moved toward Naruto, sidestepping at the last moment to send an elbow to the boy's flank. Naruto, who had been expecting a frontal assault, put up last minute defenses and blocked with only an arm. As Asuma expected, the haphazard defense was still more than enough and deflected his elbow easily. He retrieved his trench knives and jumped backward.

"Taijutsu's going to be completely ineffective on you, isn't it? Those bones are harder than steel." He remarked. Naruto grinned at the hidden complement, but then took his stance again.

His sensei was tough, and quick, as expected of the Hokage's son. Jiraiya had taught him how to maintain a rock solid defense, which because of his bloodline, was incredibly easy. If he could shut down one of the three major branches of the ninja arts, then that was all the more effective for him. Unfortunately, the man was savvy to that now, and he was most likely going to use ninjutsu. There wasn't much that super-solid bones were going to do against a huge ball of fire. Ninjutsu was going to be his Achilles heel. Fortunately, Jiraiya had taught him how to circumvent that also.

Sometimes, the best defense is a good offense.

Naruto noticed Asuma preparing hand signs and acted quickly. He pumped chakra into his gravity seal to lower the weight to zero percent before sending himself flying at Asuma. His sensei barely performed a substitution before the bony spike brigade known as Uzumaki Naruto soared past.

_So he's revealed it._ Asuma noted. He knew that Ino and Shikamaru were watching. _I wonder how the other two are taking this._

Naruto stood up and frowned, his shirt torn again by the bones. He didn't want to tear it, but he hadn't expected to have to use his ribs so early. The jonin kept dodging his attacks. Obviously, he was just testing him. He pondered his next move while Asuma stood there. He didn't know any real ninjutsu besides the substitution and the transformation – his taijutsu was essentially all he had. There was nothing he could do at this point if Asuma could dodge him all day and night. It was time to retreat.

"Commercial break!" Naruto called as he jumped into the trees.

* * *

Shikamaru watched the fight attentively, flinching a bit as bloody bones erupted from Naruto's body, but observing nonetheless. He didn't know that Naruto had a bloodline or that he was so powerful. He would be having a word with him soon.

He felt the branch bow beside him, and turned to see Naruto. The boy looked at Shikamaru for a moment before looking back at Asuma.

"I was completely ineffective." The bone-wielder said.

Shikamaru turned. "What are you talking about? You're a freaking juggernaut."

Naruto shook his head. "I guess I am, but if he keeps dodging me, I'm useless. What I need to do is get a good, clean hit on him."

Shikamaru's mind started racing. A good, clean hit, huh? He could come up with a plan for that. As they tracked Asuma, they noticed that he came up to Ino's hiding spot. Perhaps they could gain more information on his abilities here…

* * *

Ino didn't even notice until the last second when Asuma was behind her. She leapt out of the tree in fright, landing on the soft grassy ground. Asuma dropped down, shaking his head.

"You need to keep your senses up, Ino."

She would have normally done, but she was too busy thinking about how those bones suddenly exploded out of Naruto's body… They were covered in blood and everything; it must have hurt so badly.

She parried Asuma's trench knife when it came, but barely dodged the second attack. He pressed forward, attacking relentlessly with his trench knives. She could barely keep up with it, blocking and parrying with a kunai could only help so much, and for an experienced kenjutsu user like her sensei… well, she might as well give up now.

Something crashed into Asuma and she was pulled into the foliage, her scream muffled by a hand over her face.

"Ino!" The voice whispered. Through her shock, she recognized it to be Shikamaru. "Keep quiet."

She nodded, still stunned.

"Naruto's keeping Asuma-sensei busy. For now, I need to let you in on the plan…"

"Plan? We're working together. Who gets the lighter?" She asked.

"Naruto and I agreed to cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, we actually need to _get_ the lighter, and that's where you come in."

Ino considered it, then she nodded. "I can't take him alone. Let me in on it."

Shikamaru smirked. "Ino, how much genjutsu do you know?"

* * *

Asuma strolled about the training ground languidly. Naruto had retreated a while ago, stating that jumped in only to save Ino and still hadn't come up with a plan himself. The man shook his head. Such recklessness…

He looked up. Miraculously he had lost track of the three, unnerving him somewhat, but at the same time, exciting him. His nerves were on edge, and he was looking forward to the moment when they would see the true point of the test.

Of course, he would still defend the lighter with everything he had. He'd make them work for it.

His senses flared, and he noticed a shadow streaking across the grass to his right. He dodged it easily, hopping backwards as the black shape snaked toward him. He noticed a shape in his peripheral vision, and leapt forward around the shadow as Ino ambushed him from behind.

_"First, we need a genjutsu to disorient him a bit. Just a bit, so he thinks his senses are still sharp. Do you have something like that?" Shikamaru asked her. Ino thought for a moment._

_"A mild hit of the Yamanaka Mind Destruction Jutsu should do the trick." She said._

Ino's assault was different somehow. It seemed more coordinated, but it he figured that he was just paranoid. He blocked and deflected strikes as usual, staying very close to her in order to get that moment to counterattack.

_"He'll be attacking you from close range. He knew that worked last time, and if Naruto isn't around to save you, it'll work again." Shikamaru noted._

_"What'll we do about that then?" She asked, hesitant to face that barrage again._

_"Here's the kicker, Naruto will always be around. It won't be you delivering the ambush, Ino, it'll be Naruto. But he'll be too disoriented to notice."_

Ino overextended one of her assaults, and left her midsection wide open. Asuma's eyes widened. He saw an opportunity.

_"But when he counterattacks, that'll make him vulnerable to capture."_

He moved inside Ino's guard to counter with his trench knives, but almost had a heart attack when Ino's ribs erupted from her body and constricted him.

_"The ribs will keep him still long enough for me to get him."_

Asuma felt the shadow constrict him and he knew it was all over. With the Shadow Possession jutsu, it would be impossible to escape without… he felt it. The bones receded, and he felt himself reaching into his pocket and obtaining his lighter. And against his will, he handed it to Ino, who, in a shroud of smoke, transformed into Naruto. Or, perhaps, transformed _back_ into Naruto would be more like it. It was then that he realized what happened. But it was too late. Naruto was happily twirling the lighter around with his friends.

He shook his head. "Good job, you three. You got me. That was some exemplary teamwork there. But now, you face a new problem. Naruto, you pass. Ino, Shikamaru, you two fail."

Naruto shook his head and tossed the lighter behind him. "If they fail, I fail too."

"You would sacrifice your dream to be Hokage for these two?" Asuma snorted. "Naruto, your bone techniques had me on edge the whole time. It was you that allowed you three to incapacitate me. You are superior to these two."

The white-haired boy frowned. "No way. I may have caught you with my ribs, but it was Shikamaru who incapacitated you. And the plan wouldn't have even worked if Ino wasn't fucking with your mind the whole time."

Asuma's face lit in realization, and he smirked. "Clever, but the point still stands. Would you make the same arguments if your life was on the line?"

Naruto nodded, determination burning in his gaze. "Absolutely."

Asuma sighed, looking disappointed. "Very well. It would have been nice to apprentice you Naruto. You would have made an excellent student. But it looks like I'll have to treat you three the same. You three all…"

They prepared themselves for the bombshell.

"Pass." He said, grinning.

They all looked at him in shock, and Asuma merely chuckled. "You all pass. Like I said, that was some fine teamwork, and you are willing to put your teammates ahead of you in a situation like this. And you completed the mission and got the lighter. There is no reason why I shouldn't pass you."

They nodded, the suddenness of the situation leaving their systems as they listened to their teacher.

"I'll ride on the coattails of a colleague of mine a bit and quote him. 'A ninja who does not complete them mission is trash, but a ninja who does not support his comrades is worse than trash.' You all worked together, and Naruto was willing to support his comrades the entire time. A fine demonstration of what being a shinobi is all about. You should all be proud of yourselves." Asuma grinned, watching Naruto fist bump Shikamaru.

"Alright. Let's have some barbeque on me." Asuma suggested, and the three agreed immediately.

* * *

"So, Asuma-kun, how did your team function?" The Hokage asked, looking at his son who seemed to be beaming with pride.

"Excellently." He said. "They exceeded all expectations. Individually, they are skilled, and together, they are exceptional."

"Excellent." The Hokage smiled. "I expect that you will begin taking missions, then?"

"I plan on giving them D-Ranks to begin, but I expect that they will grow out of them quickly." The bearded jonin said. "I may not do too many in one day, however, and save time for training."

"A good idea." Hiruzen agreed. "So what do you plan on doing with them individually?"

"I will follow Jiraiya-sama's lead with regards to Naruto. He's done a good job with him, and I expect that he has plans for him. He is a beast one-on-one and, as Shikamaru described, a pure juggernaut. Nonetheless, I will make sure he has a ninjutsu base to go off of should his taijutsu be ineffective. I figure he also has bad chakra control, but he didn't use any jutsu besides the henge so I couldn't get an accurate guess."

Hiruzen nodded.

"Shikamaru is brilliant. I was told that the plan that they employed to bring me down was his idea entirely. He has a mind for thinking and leading – if you can motivate him. However, one-on-one, he is lacking. I will bring his dueling skills up to par and teach him versatile techniques and maneuvers, but above that I will teach him advanced tactics and leading strategies. He is destined to lead, Hokage-sama."

The third Hokage noted the form of address, but did not say anything.

"Ino is interesting. From what I can tell, she's very suited toward genjutsu and subterfuge. She got me with a Mind Destruction Jutsu during the test and it was so subtle I didn't even notice until they told me afterward." He admitted. "I probably will have her do some lessons with Anko and Kurenai to brush up her genjutsu and poison skills, but the rest of it will be jutsu training and one-on-one."

The Hokage nodded. "Why the emphasis on single combat?"

Asuma was expecting this question. "Frankly, Hokage-sama, their teamwork is already flawless. Yes, it can be improved, but there's no point in fixing what's not broken. Shikamaru and Ino aren't as skilled as Naruto in single combat and I don't want them relying on him as their frontline combatant, otherwise if he's not there by chance they'll get creamed."

"Astute judgment." Hiruzen said. "You're right when you say your team has potential, and I agree with your emphasis on addressing their weaknesses rather than increasing their strengths. I believe Jiraiya-kun is going to increase Naruto's capabilities with the Shikotsumyaku for a bit longer before going into fuinjutsu."

"Fuinjutsu? Really?" Asuma said. "I wouldn't have pegged Naruto to have the patience for that."

"Jiraiya is of the opinion that Naruto absorb it like a sponge, and frankly, I agree, despite all preconceptions." Hiruzen nodded. He seemed to have an idea. "You know, if you want to work on their one-to-one skills, I recommend you test their chakra natures."

The bearded jonin nodded.

"You know, I think Naruto's training right now, if you want to have a look." He produced the crystal ball, and Asuma looked into it.

* * *

"Again." Jiraiya said. Naruto grimaced, and bones emerged from his body. His collarbones, elbows, knees, palms, wrists, and shoulders each grew long pointed spikes from them. Jiraiya counted. "So, your limit at this point is twelve bones at once. Not bad, but I expect better. At some point, I expect that you'll be able to manipulate your entire skeletal system at once."

Naruto gaped. That was like, a hundred bones!

The Toad sage laughed at his student's expression. "Not right now, of course. That will take time. But eventually. For now, let's do a taijutsu spar. Offensive or defensive is up to you. Don't lower your gravity seal."

Naruto nodded, and he assumed a different stance than what Asuma had seen. His fingertips opened as his distal phalanges extended, becoming wickedly sharp bone claws. The top ridges of his fingers then sported emerged bones connected by cartilage in order to support his new weapons. Jiraiya had made sure he knew how to grow claws in preparation for his training with the Kyuubi's chakra. It was likely that the fox would make him more feral with its chakra, and as such, claws were a good idea to optimize that trait.

"Offensive it is." Jiraiya muttered, knowing Naruto was going to unleash some serious speed in a moment. It happened, and the Sannin parried Naruto's claw with a kunai before going in and delivering a punch to the boy's side. He then followed up with a few kicks to the side and watched the boy collapse. The Sannin crossed his arms. "Tsk tsk. Don't leave your guard open."

"You hit like a freight train…" He said, spitting blood.

"The same could be said about you." The white-haired sage retorted. Once Naruto was fully healed up again, he jumped backward and prepared for Naruto's strike.

Naruto growled at Jiraiya and rushed him once more, beginning with a feint in order to ward off the imminent parry and attack with his southpaw. But the Sannin predicted this and knocked him to the ground again.

"Don't be predictable." He said to Naruto. "Varying your attacks is fine, but make sure your opponent can't figure it out."

Naruto sighed and stood up, feeling his balance return. The Kyuubi was a godsend. "Fine. Let's do that."

Naruto swayed forward and ran toward Jiraiya, who dodged this time. Naruto returned with a spinning heel kick and sprang forward, slashing Jiraiya's chest with a bone from his knee. The young bone-wielder then spun around and slashed Jiraiya's arm with his claw. It would have been his face but the Sannin managed to block that one.

Jiraiya held up a hand and sighed. "Good, good. I'll probably have a few new scars after sparring with you for so long. I was thinking that we could wrap up our work on the Shikotsumyaku for now."

Naruto's eyes widened. "You mean…"

Jiraiya shook his head. "No, not the Kyuubi. I still have to work on a sealing array that will make learning to use its power much easier. For now, I figured I would start teaching you fuinjutsu."

Naruto didn't know what that was, so he asked Jiraiya. The Sannin figured as much so he divulged the topic information. Basically, it was working with and creating seals such as the ones on Naruto. Seemed easy enough.

Then Jiraiya divulged that it would take years of training and theory to even begin making custom seals. Naruto scowled at the mention of theory, but otherwise didn't complain. He was visibly upset at the mention of the time it took to create custom seals but he understood. If the fourth Hokage had fucked up the seal on Naruto's stomach, well, the village might as well have not existed.

Jiraiya finished. "Alright, I think that's all we'll do for now. After all, I have research to do!" He gave a lecherous chuckle and bounded off toward the hot springs, leaving behind a fuming Naruto.

"Ero-Sennin!"

* * *

"Also, Jiji, you said something about a picture?" Naruto asked, still somewhat beat up from his training. He was too busy being beat up by and beating Jiraiya to receive the ANBU summons.

"Why yes I did." Hiruzen nodded, reaching into his desk drawer. "You were absent for understandable reasons, but I expect that you will make up your appointment at this date." He scribbled a date and time onto a voucher and handed it to Naruto. "Other than that, it seems you are free to go. My student is getting his wounds treated and they should not scar, although if you keep training the way you do I figure he'll have quite a few to show for it."

Naruto shook his head. "Nah, Jiraiya-sensei said that we'll start doing fuinjutsu. I guess he's just tired of getting beat up by me all the time." Naruto laughed.

Hiruzen shook his head with a smile on his face. "Trust me Naruto, if he didn't want you to beat him up, you wouldn't have touched him." Naruto deflated. "But you performed well. I heard from Jiraiya that you are progressing very well with your Shikotsumyaku."

"Yup, although I still need to be able to work with more bones. I don't even know what half of them are!"

"I'm sure a bit of anatomy reading will help with that." Hiruzen said. Naruto made a face at that thought. "Well, it was good talking to you, but unfortunately, the paperwork never rests."

Naruto stood up to leave. "Good luck old man. When I become Hokage, I'll ban paperwork."

Hiruzen chuckled. "If only."

The door barged open. Naruto was immediately on guard, but Hiruzen merely sighed. "Not again…"

A little boy emerged. "Gramps! I'm gonna beat you up and take your hat! Hiyahhh!" Then he ran and tripped over his scarf in a very anticlimactic fashion. Naruto almost laughed, but scowled as the boy stood up and accused him of laying a trap. Naruto walked right over to him and yanked the boy up by his scarf.

"I laid a trap? Brat, you tripped on your scarf!" Naruto yelled in his face. The boy was unperturbed.

"So what're you going to do to me? I'm Sarutobi Konohamaru, the third Hokage's grandson. You can't do anything to me?"

"The old man's grandson. All I see is a petulant brat!" Naruto socked him in the face and dropped him. "Don't live in people's shadows kid. Exceed them." He turned to the Hokage. "I'll see you later Jiji."

Hiruzen nodded as Naruto left. Another man came rushing in. "Please excuse me Hokage-sama. I'll keep a better eye on Konohamaru in the future."

The Hokage nodded. "You'd better start now, Ebisu."

Konohamaru was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

Naruto stretched his arms, enjoying the crackling of his back as he did so. It was a nice day for just walking around, and the Uzumaki planned doing exactly that. He entered the training ground area when he noticed something sneaking behind him. He sighed and placed his hands in his pockets.

"Come out, Konohamaru. I can see you." Naruto sighed.

"Aw man! How'd you see me?" The diminutive figure stepped out from behind the corner he was in, his camouflage blanket thrown over his shoulder. Clearly this boy hadn't been trained very well in stealth.

"You were holding your blanked the wrong way so the fence planks were sideways." Naruto said, turning to him. "And you thought using a fucking _blanket_ to hide was a brilliant idea."

"It was!" The young Sarutobi said. "And if you're so much better, then you're going to train me!"

Naruto's eye twitched. "Say what! Look brat, I don't have time for this, alright?"

Konohamaru shrugged. "You were just aimlessly walking around the village. I don't think you have a lot to do right now."

He scowled. "Not the point. I'm not going to train you."

"But my teacher is so bad!" The younger boy whined. "All he does is talk about how he's going to teach me the shortcut to becoming Hokage, but he's doing nothing!"

Naruto frowned. Either the boy was exaggerating or his teacher was a real piece of work. Shortcuts? There were no shortcuts in life, especially not that of a shinobi. Who did this man think he was? Outwardly, Naruto sighed. "Alright, kid. If there's anything I'm going to train you in, it's that there's no shortcuts. Not ever, and especially when it comes to becoming Hokage. The old man has mastered over a thousand techniques, and each one of those took hard work and dedication." He looked at Konohamaru. "Why me anyway? Kid, I'm just a genin, why do you want me to train you?"

"That's just it!" Konohamaru said. "You call me kid or brat or whatever! You punched me in the face! People don't normally do that, they just go all like 'Oh, you're the Hokage's grandson,' or 'Tell your grandfather I say hi,' when they really should be focused on me. I don't want people to think about my grandfather when they see me, I want them to think about me."

Naruto's eyes narrowed in thought. "Huh. That was a pretty darn impressive speech for a squirt." Said squirt fumed. "But yeah, I see where you're going with that. Remember what I said about living in people's shadows?" Konohamaru nodded. "Don't take shortcuts. Don't expect special treatment. If you don't want to be seen as the Hokage's grandson, then don't be the Hokage's grandson. I'm not saying to completely forget about him, but learn to be your own person as well. Let people know."

The boy nodded, taking in what Naruto said.

"Honorable Grandson, there you are!" A voice in the distance hollered. "Come now, we must continue our training so that you can become Hokage!"

"Ebisu!" Konohamaru noted. "Not now, I want to listen to what the boss has to say?"

"Boss?" Naruto's eye twitched.

"Such a disgrace. You shouldn't associate with such ruffians. It is below your stature." The bespectacled jonin said flicking his glasses. "Now come, and let us continue our lessons."

Naruto twitched, glaring murderously. "Below your stature you say? Oi, I challenge you to a duel, Ebisu or whoever you are."

The jonin paused, interested. He pushed up his sunglasses. "You may have a victory against Touji Mizuki, but you will find, Uzumaki, that I am an elite jonin. You would do well not to press your luck. But I believe a spar is in order to show Konohamaru that I am indeed a superior teacher. I am not averse to sparring now, if you are not."

"Born ready." Naruto grinned. He lowered into a crouched stance.

"Very well. Let us begin." Ebisu moved forward with a kunai held in reverse grip, delivering a basic slashing attack. Naruto immediately knew that Ebisu was going to scout his abilities out, so he made sure not to reveal too much of his stance and habits when fending off the basic attacks.

Ebisu left an opening, and Naruto made to take advantage of it. That was when he realized his first mistake. The experienced jonin parried the punch Naruto threw and, using the opening that he just created, swung for a solid hit to Naruto's torso. Hastily, the white-haired boy projected his collar bones to deflect the punch.

"The Shikotsumyaku, an interesting ability if I do say so myself." Ebisu said. "The defensive applications are impressive."

"Glad you think so." Naruto said, retracting his collar. He stepped back, gauging his enemy's stance for a moment. "But the cat's out of the bag now!" He extended his distal phalanges once more to form the claw-like blades of his offensive stance.

Ebisu merely adjusted his glasses while dodging the rapid claw attacks easily and fluidly. He scoffed at Naruto's attempts to touch him. "You must predict your opponent's movements, lest they dodge you forever."

"I'm trying!" He barked, attacking for the kill each time. Continuing to be dodged, Naruto's frustration only increased. There was a significant power difference between Academy teacher and active jonin, he discovered as he attacked. It only emphasized the fact that during spars, Jiraiya went easy on him.

Prediction. He repeated it in his head like a mantra. Prediction was key to winning in a fight. Predict and be unpredictable. That was the goal.

Ebisu made for a counterstrike, and that was when Naruto made his move. He stepped backwards and caught the man's arm in a grapple. Using his superior stance, Naruto flipped the Jonin over his shoulder and made to slam him onto the ground, only to slam a log into the ground instead. He cursed. A substitution jutsu!

His reflexes reacted, and synapses fired accordingly. Ebisu barely stopped his rear assault as Naruto's vertebrae distended into sharp skewers of bony death. They retracted just as quickly, and the young Uzumaki whipped about and threw his foot at the jonin, who dodged and jumped backward.

"Alright. We have seen that your taijutsu is exemplary, but what about your ninjutsu?" Ebisu made hand signs and drew in a breath. "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!" Naruto's eyes widened and he barely dodged the great fireball that erupted from his adversary's mouth.

"You'll be disappointed to know that I barely use Ninjutsu." Naruto grinned. "For now, my taijutsu is my best bet." He charged at Ebisu again.

"A ninja who specializes is a dead ninja." The man taunted, making seals for another fire jutsu. "Katon: Zukkoku!" A small burst of flame came from his mouth this time, but the ground it touched exploded into flames, forcing Naruto to leap. He retracted his claws and made to attack with just a brawny punch as he landed, but Ebisu dodged that as well. The ground exploded as Naruto made impact, but he didn't let the earth's reaction force deter him.

"Enough." Ebisu stopped the radial spike by catching it in his hand. "I have seen enough. You fought well, but I'm afraid you cannot beat a jonin yet."

Naruto frowned. He figured as much. He would have to step up his training with Jiraiya, tell the old fart to stop holding back on him, as much pain as that would cause him in the future. "You're the real deal."

Ebisu nodded. "While you are exemplary for a genin, you still have a ways to go. I am aware of your chakra situation. I would suggest ninjutsu training at some point in the future."

Naruto nodded, accepting his advice. "Why are you suddenly teaching and helping me? Weren't we having a fight a few moments ago?"

Ebisu pushed up his glasses. "First and foremost, I am Konoha's elite instructor. It is my duty to assist in the potential of Konoha's ninja to be realized."

The bone wielder nodded. "You should probably teach Konohamaru then." He looked over at the boy, who had been silent the whole time. "Tell him that there are no shortcuts to being Hokage, only hard work, blood, sweat, and tears. He has to work for it."

"Sound advice." Ebisu said, smirking. "Young man, you may not realize it, but you may be cut out for teaching as well, but not theory rather than practical skills and mindsets. That is, if your leadership skills don't make you Hokage."

Naruto gaped. Did he just say that?

The special jonin spoke again. "It was a pleasure testing your abilities. I am sure Hokage-sama will be pleased with my report. Konohamaru, come. We shall speak to your grandfather."

The boy nodded, and turned to Naruto. "See ya boss."

Naruto waved nonchalantly, before turning to face the other direction. As the other two left earshot, he sighed. "So it was a test after all. I should have known the old man would do that."

* * *

_"__Ah, before you leave…" The Hokage had interrupted. Ebisu turned and bowed slightly._

_"What can I do for you, Lord Hokage?"_

_Hiruzen took a drag from his pipe. "Test Naruto's abilities for me. Give me your perspective on his skills."_

_"Of course." Ebisu pushed up his sunglasses. _

The Hokage nodded, placing his hands on the desk. "It's good of you to think so highly of him, despite him not knowing it. I am pleased that you think so well of his abilities."

Ebisu bowed. "Thank you, Hokage-sama."

Hiruzen chuckled. "Think nothing of it. Your drive to improve the skills of everyone is apparent, and I commend you for that. I appreciate your work. You are dismissed."

"Yes Lord Hokage." Ebisu bowed again before turning and walking out of the room.


	3. The Demon Brothers and their Cat

**_Chapter 3: The Demon Brothers and their Cat_**

* * *

He ran forward, placing his foot onto the tree before ascending it. Suddenly, he felt that new sensation of his axes tilting as he traveled along the perpendicular plane of the bark. Then, it ended. He fell on his ass.

"Damn it." Naruto scowled. "I almost had it that time."

Asuma shook his head. "You're putting too much chakra into it. See that mark on the tree?" Naruto looked at the bark and noticed there was a scorched section of the tree, most likely from the overabundance of chakra he used to stick to it. "That's the reason why this technique is applied for chakra control, because it requires such a precise amount of chakra."

Naruto frowned at the plant that dared to defy him. "Doesn't stop it from being difficult."

Asuma laughed. "No it doesn't. Nor does it change the fact that you still need to get up there."

The boy scowled before running at the tree again.

"I've got it!" Ino cheered as she sat at the top. She dangled her legs off the branch, grinning.

"Very nice job, Ino." Asuma said. "Your chakra control is definitely really good." He watched Naruto fall off the tree again. "Perhaps you could give Naruto here a few pointers."

Naruto stood up and growled at the defiant piece of wood. "I just want to walk up you, damn it!" He swore at the tree. It was not fazed.

"Hey, Naruto. Just take it slowly. Feel the tree with your chakra, like this." Ino walked up to his tree and pressed her foot against it, feeling for the right amount of chakra. "When you have the right amount, your foot should stick to the tree. Don't try running up until you know the exact amount you need."

Naruto nodded, and tried it, feeling his foot stick tightly to the tree after a bit of trial and error with chakra input. "Wow, thanks Ino." He said, grinning. He then hiked up the tree, making sure to apply that principle all the way up. In a moment of overconfidence, he slipped near the top, but managed to grab again with his feet. He stopped mere inches above a terrified Ino. "That was close." Naruto walked up again.

Ino scowled, raising her fist at him. "Watch where you're going baka!" Asuma merely chuckled.

Naruto marched back down the tree. "Hey where's Shika?"

Asuma tilted his head, indicating Naruto to look in that direction, where Shikamaru was asleep on a tree branch. "He's already done." The jonin sensei smirked.

"Huh?!" Naruto said, looking at the lazy genin again. "How did he get it so fast?"

The bearded jonin stroked his chin. "Dunno. He's just better than you maybe?"

Naruto turned around and crossed his arms. "Hmph!"

Asuma smirked thoughtfully. He had to teach them ninjutsu anyway. While this was technically. "Tell you what, Naruto. Get this down and I'll teach you about chakra natures."

Naruto grinned. "Alright!"

* * *

His torture wasn't over for the day, unfortunately. It had been a month since they had officially become genin, and when the endless D-Rank weren't there to make him cry himself to sleep, his sensei Jiraiya was.

"Jiraiya-sensei! I think I got it!" Naruto said, beaming with pride at his new storage seal. The pattern, from the eyes of a standard ninja, looked impeccable. Jiraiya's eyes gleamed.

"Okay then, brat." The Toad Sage instructed. "If you think you've got it, seal something in there."

Naruto nodded and retrieved a kunai from his pouch, placing it on the scroll. He made a ram hand sign. "Fuin!" The small dagger disappeared. Naruto grinned and looked up at Jiraiya, who nodded.

"Alright, now get it out of there."

Naruto placed his hand on the seal and charged it with chakra. It promptly exploded, sending Naruto bouncing and skidding across the grass until he crashed painfully into a tree. Jiraiya howled with laughter when Naruto looked up with a dazed expression on his face.

"Brat, you intersected the recursion matrices on the left!" The Sannin grinned.

"When were you going to tell me that!?" The young Uzumaki barked.

"The seal told you that well enough!" Jiraiya laughed.

Naruto frowned picking up his supplies. Jiraiya had gotten him an inkpot and brush in order to start sealing, but to the boy's dismay, the first few weeks of sealing practice had instead been calligraphy lessons. Jiraiya said that if his handwriting wasn't perfect when he created seals shit could hit the fan quickly. The Sannin said that every seal master owned a calligraphy set and used it regularly.

Jiraiya was an effective teacher. Naruto couldn't doubt that. As a result of the weeks spent practicing calligraphy, Naruto found it difficult to write with anything less than perfect handwriting. His wrists – both of them, Jiraiya had emphasized that ambidexterity was one of the most important skills for a seal master to have – were dexterous and capable of creating the most fleeting, romantic strokes with a single movement.

Jiraiya sighed after controlling his laughter. "Okay Naruto, write another one, and this time _don't_ intersect the recursion matrices, and this time, do it with your left hand." The Sannin said carefully. Naruto growled, picking up the brush with his southpaw and drawing the appropriate matrices with a few brush strokes before calling it good. Jiraiya picked up the paper and took a look over it.

He was very impressed with how Naruto's calligraphy was going. He picked it up almost instantly, and the rest he had absorbed like a sponge. Jiraiya had hypothesized initially that Naruto was born ambidextrous like his father, but wrote with his right hand out of habit, because from the get go his left-handed strokes were equivalent to his right-handed ones. He looked over the seal before, checking the methods and execution this time.

Jiraiya gave no guidance on this assignment. After Naruto learned some basic sealing theory, the Sannin had told him to come up with a seal that could store objects on his own, so he was surprised at the design that the young Uzumaki had come up with. It was… Uzumaki-like in its design, which Jiraiya figured could only be genetic, but there was some latent genius hidden in it as well. In fact, with the recursive matrices not intersecting like before… This was the most efficient storage seal that he had ever seen. Jiraiya put up a poker face like a pro, but grinned inwardly. This boy was a natural genius.

"Alright. This is good." The Sannin said. He handed it back to Naruto. "This time, don't lose your kunai in a chakra void." Naruto nodded, he spread out the seal and sealed the kunai inside, seeing the dagger vanish. Now to get it out. He placed a hand on the seal, pumped in some chakra, and grinned when the kunai emerged unscathed. "Yeah!" He jumped up. "I knew it would work!"

Jiraiya nodded, pride swelling in him for his student. "Excellent work, Naruto. Produce seals like that and you're on the road to mastery."

Naruto turned to him. "I thought you said not anyone could become masters?"

Jiraiya shrugged. "Well, anyone can become a master if they live long enough, but the truly gifted are those who master it in twenty years or so. The Fourth Hokage was recognized as a seal master less than ten years after he began studying it."

"Whoa." Naruto's eyes widened. He knew just how much you had to know to become a seal master. Ten years was amazing.

The Sannin grinned. "Don't get a big head after this, but I think you might finish in about the same time as the Yondaime did."

"What!" Naruto jumped up. "That's amazing. I'm so cool!"

Jiraiya pounded his head, knocking him to the ground. "Didn't I tell you not to let that get to your head? The Fourth was one of the most humble men I've met, despite being the turning factor for the Third Shinobi World War and one of the strongest men ever to exist. Humility will serve you well." The Sannin concluded sagely. Naruto nodded, understanding Jiraiya's point.

"For now," the Sannin began, "we will continue with your theory lessons on chakra interactions. Tell me, what did you learn about that from your reading…?"

* * *

Naruto sighed. This mission was intense. The target was tough as nails. It was going to take a lot to complete this task. He gulped. He did not want to approach the target. Not with what it did to him last time. A bead of sweat rolled down his brow…

"Violet in position." A female voice came over the line.

"Copy that." A sigh was heard over the line. "Future Lord Hokage-sama, what's your status?" A flat voice asked.

"In position, Shade." He confirmed, grinning at the use of his specially picked codename. "Ready for orders."

"Copy that." The voice gave. "Target will be bound shortly, move out in five, four, three, two, one…"

Naruto leapt out of the foliage toward the target at what he felt like was a million miles per hour. He approached, and it saw him. He made his final prayers.

"MEOW!"

* * *

"Seriously, Naruto, I don't know why you hate Tora so much." Ino snuggled it. "He's so cute."

Naruto crossed his arms and turned his head away petulantly. His face still had the scar, for some reason. "That cat's the devil."

"He just likes me better than you." Ino argued back. The cat meowed its agreement.

"You're just jealous 'cause my chakra nature training is going so much better than yours." Naruto argued back childishly.

Ino scowled. "You wish. Besides, I'm not the one with bones that essentially count as chakra points. Nor do I have the same nature as sensei." Ino said. "I'm earth natured, unlike sensei."

Naruto shrugged. "I'm earth natured too."

"Well you can't teach me anything, can you?" Ino smacked him over the head. Then she grinned. "But was funny to see sensei's face."

"You mean when I…" Naruto asked, stopping at Ino's nod. "Yeah that was pretty funny."

_Flashback_

_Asuma smiled at Naruto's split leaf. "Good, you're picking this up fast."_

_"Well, you're wind natured." Naruto said. "You're speaking from experience with this."_

_Asuma nodded. "That is true. So, try moving wind chakra to various points in your body. Feel its movement. It's pretty easy to channel wind chakra internally." He pulled out one of his trench knives, coating it with wind. "Once you get the feeling down, I'll teach you how to do this."_

_Naruto tilted his head. "You mean this?" Naruto showed his palm and a bone erupted out of it, coated in wind. It wasn't sharp like Asuma's trench knife, showing Naruto's amateurish skill in the subject, but the jonin figured that the boy would get it soon enough. Nonetheless, he gaped. He had no response to what just happened. "Did you just?"_

_Naruto shrugged. "You were the one that said it was easy to manipulate wind chakra internally. I was told my bones were like big chakra points."_

_Asuma was still shocked. That just wasn't fair. Naruto just laughed at his expression._

_Flashback End_

The young bone-wielder grinned. "Yeah, I'm pretty good, huh?"

Ino giggled. "I'm sure sensei's just jealous."

From their side, they heard Shikamaru shake his head. "Troublesome…"

They entered the Hokage's office once more, with the cat in hand, noticing Asuma was there. He had been observing them. The mission's client, the Daimyo's wife Madame Shijimi immediately bounded over and retrieved her precious pet, which began meowing loudly as it was enveloped in a bone-crushing hug by the woman. As much as Naruto enjoyed the cat's pain, even he had to wince when he heard something crack. The woman thanked the kids profusely, lightheartedly scolded her cat, and bid her farewells to the occupants of the room, remarking that she would put in a good word with the Daimyo. The Hokage merely nodded pleasantly, having heard this from her many times before, and bid her a safe return to her abode.

"Good job on your mission." Asuma said. "Capturing Tora has never been an easy thing." He shuddered, remembering his own days as Genin and having to catch the precursor to that monster.

Ino looked at the jonin confusedly. "Why's that, sensei? He was the most lovable little thing ever."

The bearded jonin sighed. "Well, he always picks at least one person on the team to mercilessly claw to death." He looked at his team, chuckling at Naruto's furious expression. Shikamaru merely sighed.

"Sensei, Naruto got destroyed by that cat. It was only by Ino's doing that we could complete the mission." The Nara ignored Naruto's death glare.

"Even so," the Hokage interrupted. Everyone stopped their glaring and talking immediately, "your team has done admirable work lately, completing no less than forty D-rank missions in the span of a month. Your sensei and I have spoken, and it has been decided that I would assign team 10 a C-rank mission."

Naruto's eyes bugged out, before he threw his fist in the air. "All right! Thanks old man!"

Ino smacked him. "Naruto! Control yourself before Hokage-sama."

Hiruzen chuckled at the children's antics. "It is quite alright, Ino-chan. You can say that Naruto-kun and I go way back."

Ino gaped, but composed herself quickly. "Of course! Please excuse me!" She bowed, but the Hokage waved it off, stating that she needed not be so apologetic for something she had no knowledge of.

"Back to the topic." Hiruzen began, "Your mission is to escort a bridge builder to his home country of Nami no Kuni, protecting him from the threat of bandits. Then you must stay until his project is complete."

Naruto frowned. "Escort a bridge builder? Don't we get to, you know, save a princess or something?"

Hiruzen looked at him. "You will treat your client with the utmost respect and offer exemplary service in the name of Konoha."

Naruto sighed. "Yes, Jiji."

The Sandaime Hokage nodded, and turned to Asuma. "Your client will meet you at the southern gate tomorrow morning. Make sure your students pack what they need for this trip; you know the details."

Asuma nodded, before turning to his students. "Alright, you will pack up and be ready for a two-week trip starting tomorrow morning. Meet me at the southern gate then. Dismissed."

Naruto and the others nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow, sensei! See you later Jiji!" He grinned and bolted out the door to catch up with his teammates. Asuma merely sighed.

"The rambunctiousness of youth." Hiruzen smiled.

"Tell me about it." Asuma chuckled. "At least Shikamaru brings some balance to the dynamic. I don't know what I would do if it was just Naruto and Ino… They'd run me ragged."

Hiruzen laughed, and dismissed the jonin, bidding him good luck on this mission. As Asuma left, Hiruzen looked back at his desk, and briefly his eyes met the document speaking to Nami no Kuni's current economic status that he had hidden previously. He leafed through various intelligence reports on Wave before piling them together neatly and returning them to a blank manila folder.

"Forgive an old man for sending you on this mission, Naruto-kun." Hiruzen sighed. "But consider it a test of your mettle."

* * *

The white haired boy finished sealing up everything he needed into a single small scroll and placed it on his kitchen table. Naruto looked outside. The sun was drawing down and the day was coming to a close.

"Welp, today was a good day, I guess." He said. He looked at his desk, which he had acquired recently with which to draw seals and study, and remembered the problem he was working on earlier but stopped because he hit an impasse. He shrugged. With nothing else to do he sat down and got to work. It wasn't like he was going to sleep soon anyway.

As he expected, the morning came faster than he would have preferred. Nonetheless, he gave in and opened his eyes, frowning at the light. He grumbled. It wasn't the sunlight peeking in through his window that woke him up, but rather, something much worse.

"Shikamaru! Get your lazy ass up!" Nara Yoshino roared from the other side of his door.

"Troublesome woman…" The Shikamaru scion sighed as he sat up. He spoke slightly louder, trying not to exert himself. "I'm up!"

"Well you have a mission to get ready for. Chop, chop!" She stopped, and Shikamaru sighed in relief as he heard her retreating footsteps. He stepped out of his bed and gathered clothes from his dresser.

"I just hope this mission isn't troublesome." He sighed. "Just a walk to Nami no Kuni. Maybe I can see some clouds…"

* * *

Shikamaru made it to the front gate and stopped, dropping his backpack on the ground as he leaned against the wall. He noticed one of his teammates had beaten him here. "Didn't expect you to be the first one here, Ino."

She shrugged. "I woke up early so I made the best of it." Her backpack was next to her on the bench. She moved it to her lap. "Sit by me."

Shikamaru shrugged and sat by his teammate, relishing the chance to lean his head back and watch the clouds. He sighed, this time in comfort, as he let his usual lazy self take over. "Surprisingly, I'm not worried at all about this mission."

Ino looked at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

"I should be nervous, right?" He chuckled. "I'm not nervous at all. Just relaxed. Somehow, I feel like everything's going to go okay."

"That's because you trust your teammates." Their sensei's voice was heard to their side. He gave the duo a small wave, lighting a cigarette. "Where's Naruto?"

Ino shrugged. "Not here."

Asuma nodded. "Well, we have a bit longer until the client arrives, so…"

"I told you, I didn't do it, alright?" A younger voice yelled. The three looked over to see Naruto in a spat with a merchant; apples were all over the ground.

"I'll report you to the Hokage!" The old man warned, raising a finger. "Wreaking havoc like some demon. Bah!" He spat on ground ahead of Naruto's feet. "Die on this mission of yours like my wife did." The merchant continued picking up his apples. Naruto pursed his lips and did an about-face, moving toward his team.

"There goes my good day." He mumbled. He looked up at his team and waved casually. "What's up?"

Ino marched up to him. "What's up? Baka, what the hell was that?"

Naruto flinched. "You saw that, did you?"

"Hell yeah I did," Ino said. "No one deserves such treatment. 'Die like my wife did,' really? You should teach that fart a lesson."

Naruto raised a hand. "Ino, enough."

"No, not enough. That was completely uncalled for! You apologized and everything! I mean, who does that?"

Naruto looked at her. "It happens a lot to me, alright? I'm completely used to it."

Shikamaru piped up. "What do you mean, 'it happens a lot?' Why does this happen a lot?" He looked at Naruto with discerning eyes; the white-haired boy was forced to look away.

"No reason. It just does." Suddenly, his attitude changed. "Anyway, let's make this mission a good one!"

Shikamaru eyed him critically, but said nothing. Ino on the other hand was vocal about her feelings. "You're not keeping secrets from us, are you?"

Naruto turned away. "It's stupid, alright. It'll distract us from our mission."

Asuma interrupted. "He's right. For now, we focus on the mission. Naruto, at some point, you should tell your teammates about _it_ though." At Naruto's look, he added. "That is not an order, but a recommendation. Keep that in mind."

The group said nothing until Asuma spotted the client. "Ah, Tazuna-san. It's good to see you here. Allow me to introduce you to my students."

Naruto got a look at the man. He was short, old, and somewhat buzzed, despite the early hour. Really, they were escorting his guy? Talk about boring. The Hokage's words echoed in his mind, and Naruto kept his mouth closed. The client, however, had no such obligation.

"Really, this is the team I get?" The man frowned. "A bunch of brats?"

Asuma sighed. "Tazuna-san, for the sake of convenience, I recommend that you respect the people who are guarding your life. I know the chances are unlikely, but bandits are still possible."

Tazuna gave Asuma a look at that, but the jonin didn't seem to notice.

"Alright, now that we're all here, let's move out." He hoped to get his team pumped and ready to go, but the tension still lingered.

* * *

Perhaps, it was the walk that gave him some time to think. Naruto had cooled down a bit, but he still wasn't particularly talkative. Ino noticed that his eyes darted back and forth, as if he were completely paranoid.

"You alright, Naruto?" She asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. He sighed.

"I can't help but be paranoid." The bone wielder replied, very conscious of his paranoia. "I feel like something bad's going to happen."

Ino shook her head. "Look, we're more than capable of dealing with this, alright?"

Naruto shrugged. "Yeah, but that doesn't really help at all."

She frowned at the cryptic reply, but when it was clear that he wasn't going to say anything more, she dropped the topic. The team marched onward. Tazuna occasionally talked about the country he was from, telling tales of how the people were happy and times were profitable. Despite his jovial tone, Ino could clearly see a layer hidden underneath his voice.

It only added to Naruto's nervousness.

Suddenly, everything was in motion. She stood on a puddle and then, out of nowhere, Asuma was split in two. The length of chain severed top from bottom, and Ino couldn't help but scream in shock.

"Ino, move!" She heard a voice, barely remembering Shikamaru from the shock, and she moved to protect the client. She glanced back at Tazuna, who was just as stunned, and observed her enemies.

Naruto flew into action as soon as the puddle even rippled. He was too late to save Asuma, but he would make these pieces of shit _pay_. Adhering to the ground with chakra, he yanked the chain, using his surprising strength to cause one of the attackers to come flying back at him. Then, there were five bony claws through his chest. Tazuna nearly puked.

"Gozu!" The remaining man cried, watching his brother fall to the ground off of the white demon's claw. "The white curse… It's supposed to be extinct."

Naruto gave him a look. Red irises tore at the missing nin's sanity. "Sensei was supposed to be alive." Leaning into his run, thinking no more, the traumatized boy ran toward the man, bone white claws gleaming with blood. The man blocked with his gauntlet, but the bones did not bow.

"Naruto!" Shikamaru called. He made a rat hand sign and extended his shadow, trying to catch the missing-nin. The man was aware of the Nara clan technique and dodged the shadow, stress marking his expression as he also tried to handle the onslaught of the Jinchuuriki.

This left him completely unprepared for the sudden lurch in his brain. He felt something enter his mind and was powerless to repress it.

Ino was greeted with a vision of Naruto charging toward her, a feral gleam in his wild red eyes. She panicked as the image embedded itself into her memory, and screamed.

"Naruto, stop! It's me, Ino! I'm in his mind!" Naruto screeched to a halt, but the damage was clearly there. Even proxied by another body he could see the fright she had just experienced. It was something that would haunt her.

Naruto caught his breath, letting his rational mind catch up. "Alright, Ino, so you got him. Let me finish him off."

"Wrong answer." Asuma's voice was heard as he walked into the path, good as new. There was no mangled body or blood where their sensei had perished, but rather, merely a log. He looked at Naruto sternly. "Don't lost control like that or you could lose vital information. We need to interrogate this man. Ino, can you see his memories from there?"

The man shook his head. "No, I'm not that good at the Shintenshin jutsu yet."

Asuma nodded. "Fine, we do it the classic way. It would be a good time to teach you lot how to interrogate, although it'll be tough, since his brother's dead."

Naruto paled. "That was his brother…! I killed him." He looked at his bloody claws, which were still extended, and vomited. Asuma said nothing while Ino held her mouth in shock and Shikamaru turned away. Tazuna had also turned away, but for other reasons.

"Tazuna-san." Asuma stated. "Before Naruto disposed of Oni Kyoudai no Gozu, the two were clearly after you. Any reasoning behind that?"

The old man gulped, before telling his tale. "Alright… I lied on the mission report. You see, Nami no Kuni's in big trouble right now."

Asuma nodded. "Go on."

"Well, there's this man, you see, who took over the entire economy of Wave. Gato, his name is, of Gato Corp." Tazuna explained.

Asuma shook his head. "And we're up against that…? There's no way we can continue this mission. It's at least A-Rank at this point."

Tazuna grew exasperated. "But you must! The bridge is our only hope! With it our people will be saved!"

"That's fantastic." Asuma drawled. "The fact remains that we as a team are not prepared to handle this mission. Our next opponent will be much stronger than these two, likely A-Ranked or even S-Ranked, because I know Gato can afford to spend such money, especially on such a large investment as this."

"So you'll just leave us to die." Tazuna spat.

"I never said that. We will escort you back to Konoha, where we will talk the situation over with the Hokage. I'm sure we can cut a deal." Asuma grinned. "You'll find that Hokage-sama is a very generous man, and very willing to reason."

Tazuna sighed. "I… what if he doesn't?"

"Then you have the option to request an A-Rank mission and take a loan." The jonin said.

"I have no choice, do I?"

"Konohagakure no Sato is a military institution. There are no free missions."

Tazuna gulped. "Fine… Let's go back."

Asuma nodded. "Let's go, children. Also, Tazuna-san."

The old man turned.

"Typically, if you lie on mission parameters, Konoha will allow the employed ninja to kill the client immediately as per the Shinobi Behavioral Regulations. We can't afford to have people lying on mission parameters."

Tazuna gulped.

"Naruto, you have sealing scrolls?" Asuma queried.

The white-haired boy jumped. "Yeah, I do, but how did you know?"

"You have no backpack. Now, seal up the body and incapacitate the other. We're bringing them back."

* * *

As they entered the gates, Asuma made to dismiss them. "Alright team, I think you all are dismissed for now. This will be marked as an aborted A-Rank mission in your records."

They all nodded, and began to move off, when another voice was heard. "Naruto-kun, please remain."

They turned around and noticed Sarutobi Hiruzen standing there, as if waiting for them.

"Jiji?" Naruto asked, receiving a stern glare from Asuma.

"It is improper to refer to Hokage-sama with casual titles in front of a client." The jonin supplied. "Even if you do know him well."

Hiruzen nodded, and Naruto shrunk a bit in embarrassment.

"And, pardon any insubordination, but why did you ask for Naruto to remain here?" Asuma asked, tilting an eyebrow.

The Hokage looked at Naruto, and his eyes twinkled with some hidden fact. "No reason, merely if Naruto-kun strives to be Hokage one day I figure politics and negotiation is an important thing to study up on."

Asuma nodded, accepting the fact that he wasn't going to get any true information from the man.

"Let us head to my office. I'm sure we have things to discuss, Tazuna-san."

The bridge builder nodded, and the group moved. Uneventfully, they passed by the secretary of the Hokage, who greeted the Hokage warmly and went up the stairs to the Hokage's office.

Hiruzen entered first, and beckoned for the others to follow. "Naruto-kun, I expect you to be silent throughout this exchange. This a learning experience."

Naruto nodded. "Yes, Hokage-sama."

Hiruzen's eyes softened imperceptibly at the title, but he returned to the matter at hand. He took a seat at his desk, leafing through some manila folders before he found the ones he needed.

"Tazuna-san." The Hokage began. "Before we begin, please note that this mission turned out exactly as Konoha expected it to."

Asuma's eyes widened; he was about to question it, but he kept his mouth closed. Naruto restrained himself only barely. The Hokage placed the contents of his folder on his desk, flipping through it.

"I would say that Konoha's intelligence-gathering system is the finest in the world, but every country claims that." The Hokage began. "We tracked you as you arrived, Tazuna-san, and noticed the Oni Kyoudai were shadowing you. As you stated your home country, more pieces of the puzzle came together. Tell me, Tazuna-san. How long has it been since Hohote Kaiza passed away?"

Tazuna gaped. "Um, two months Hokage-sama."

"Yes, and since then, Konoha has been monitoring Nami no Kuni's economic depression. Typically, Tazuna-san, nations are not permitted to interfere with each other. It makes people nervous, yes?"

Tazuna nodded. The Hokage sighed and continued.

"However, there is also the fact that once a certain line is crossed, it becomes morally deplorable to ignore the situation." He said, writing on a scroll. "Therefore, it is my responsibility to tell you this. Bear, your orders."

A cloaked man appeared from the shadows, making Tazuna jump. He received the paper and bowed to the Hokage before disappearing.

"Gato will mysteriously die in three days." The Hokage said. "Through a strange quirk of fate, control of the company and its funds will pass into your hands. Exactly half of those funds will be missing, but the remaining half is more than enough to jumpstart your country. Konohagakure no Sato had no involvement in this mission, except an aborted A-Rank mission."

Tazuna gaped. "Hokage-sama, thank you so much!"

Hiruzen nodded. "You and Asuma are dismissed."

Tazuna practically jumped for joy and might as well have skipped out of the room. Asuma turned to Hiruzen, before shrugging and following the client. Naruto remained in the office.

"What did you learn from that exchange, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto frowned. "Well, I learned that the Hokage is generous?" He hazarded. Hiruzen shook his head.

"Black-ops missions, Naruto, are an essential part of leading. Working in the dark as well as the light." Hiruzen answered. He gazed past Naruto. "Also, the finest spymaster in the world, and I do mean that seriously, is standing behind you Naruto."

Naruto whipped around to see a shimmer and some form of invisibility vanish. Jiraiya of the Sannin stood in the corner of the room.

"I asked him to monitor this conversation, but also merely to be here for what we are about to discuss now. Jiraiya, if you would."

He nodded. "Naruto, everything said from now until the end of this conversation is an S-class secret. That means that one mutter and Konoha has the right to execute you, with me so far? You may or may not enjoy this information, but _don't_ go blabbing it to anyone else."

Naruto nodded mutely. "Yes, sensei."

The Sannin nodded. "Right, so you know I'm Konoha's spymaster, which also is a secret by the way. Well, it's been decided that I would be chained down here following sensei, so someone needs to take my place."

"I have dealt with this paperwork for more than four decades." Sarutobi quipped. "I think that is more than enough."

"Right," Jiraiya drawled. "Well, once I become Hokage, it's impossible for me to travel as spymasters do, and you know what kid, I like you, so I offered to train you in the ways of spymastering."

Naruto frowned. "Why me? I thought I was an all-out offensive sort of guy."

Jiraiya shrugged. "You are, but then again, so am I. But that's not part of the secret, is it? To the world, I'm Jiraiya of Mount Myoboku, the Toad Sage and writer of great books, but underneath, I'm Konoha's intelligence foundation."

Naruto frowned. "So you're saying I should have this secrecy thing going on too?"

Jiraiya nodded. "Yes. Now, I won't start training you until after you become chuunin." He said. "Sensei's not leaving his job for another three years so unless something extreme happens I have just enough time to train you and do my job. But training you will involve taking you out of the village with me, in order for you to get a hands-on experience."

Naruto nodded, accepting this information. "So I'm Konoha's next spymaster."

Jiraiya nodded. "Oh, and there's something else I need to tell you. You're free to share this, but I really wouldn't recommend it. It you start blabbing about it you _will_ gain unwanted attention."

"Unwanted attention?"

"If Iwa catches wind of this, chances are you'll see a few assassination attempts in your life." Jiraiya shrugged. "Can you handle it?"

Naruto gulped. This was some big info if Iwa would kill him for it. There was one more thing he had to ask. "Why would Iwa want to kill me for it?"

Jiraiya smirked. "Revenge."

"I already know about the Fox." Naruto frowned. "If it did something to them…"

Jiraiya shook his head, a grin spreading on his face. "Oh this is much better."

"Tell me. I think I can handle it sensei." Naruto challenged.

Jiraiya shrugged. "Very well. Naruto, the reason why you haven't been told this before is that children are very loose-lipped about the best information they've ever heard in their lives. You, Naruto, are the son of Iwa's scourge and bane, the very man who cost them the Third Shinobi World War, Namikaze Minato, the Fourth Hokage."

Naruto gaped. "What!"

"Tis true, although your hair color was a mystery to us until you manifested your bloodline." Jiraiya commented. "See, your mother had red hair, she was Uzumaki Kushina, Konoha's Red-Hot Blooded Habanero, or to our enemies, Konoha's Red Death."

Naruto blinked. "So my parents were total badasses then?"

Jiraiya laughed. "Just about, yeah."

Naruto frowned. "So… if my last name is Uzumaki, then how come nobody connected me to my mom?"

Jiraiya shrugged. "It was well known that the main-lineage Uzumaki always had red hair. Even if they married someone with a different hair color, the hair was always red. Kushina-chan was an extraordinarily pure-blooded Uzumaki; the last divergence in her blood before you was at about… sixty or seventy back or so."

"Years back? That's not a long time."

Jiraiya shook his head. "Generations, kid. Generations. The Uzumaki had been around for a while. Almost as long as the Senju themselves. And they did a damn good job at tracing their history."

"That's…" Naruto began. "Incredible. And I'm a main-branch Uzumaki? I've got family?"

Jiraiya looked at Hiruzen, who frowned. The Sannin spoke. "Kid, you're _the _main-branch Uzumaki. The clan has long since been wiped out. Since the Second World War."

Naruto frowned, biting his lip. "So I've got no family then."

Jiraiya smirked. "Kid, you've got me. I taught your father. He made me your godfather. Frankly, I'm glad I had the privilege of telling you your heritage and seeing you."

Naruto teared up a bit, but quickly blinked it out.

"Alright, now, don't forget, you're free to talk about the Kyuubi and your heritage to whomever you like, those burdens are your own, but don't let that information spread too far, you hear?"

Naruto nodded, a smile forming on his face.

"Also, don't talk about our arrangement, okay?" Jiraiya grinned. "S-class secret and all, so yeah, keep that to yourself."

"Um, sensei?" Naruto broached. Jiraiya quirked an eyebrow. "So, you said that I would start training only when I became a chuunin. And you said that Jiji will only be Hokage for three more years, giving us just enough time to train…" Jiraiya's eyes widened as he made the connection. "So either you'll Jiji will extend his time until I become chuunin or…"

Jiraiya nodded. "Don't let it get to your head. Trust me, by the time the chuunin exams roll around, I will train your ass into the ground until you are definitely chuunin material." He stopped, looking at Naruto critically. "We may have a long way to go."

"Hey!"

The Hokage cleared his throat. "Now, Naruto-kun, I hope you enjoyed this conversation, but I have meetings to attend. Also, you may want to return to your studies so that we can get you going quickly, but for now you both are dismissed."

Naruto grinned. "Yes, Jiji."


End file.
